The Birthday Present
by MzDany
Summary: Cam finds out that finding the perfect birthday present for Hunter is harder than he thought…Slash CamHunter
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: AU and not part of my C/H series;  
__I consider it AU, because both Cam and Hunter are gay and sexually experienced. Not with each other, although by the end of this story, they will be :)  
Timeline: Before Cam became the Green Samurai Ranger. _

_WARNING: This is slash, meaning two men depicted in sexual situations. If this is not your thing, DON'T READ THIS!  
__That established – on with the story…_

**The birthday present  
By Dany  
Rated R**

Summary: Cam finds out that finding the perfect birthday present for Hunter is harder than he thought…

Come on, bro, you can do better than that!" Blake gave his brother a smug grin, skewered his wooden training _bo _into the sand and waited for the older Bradley to push himself into an upright position. Hunter glowered at his brother as he scrambled back to his feet, retrieved his own training staff from where it had landed a few feet away and re-assumed his two-handed attack stance. Their sparring session so far had definitely been in Blake's favor, but from the expression on Hunter's face, it was clear that he had every intention of turning that around.

"It's your fault I'm not at a hundred percent today," he snapped at the black-haired boy. "You kept me up half the night with your snoring."

"I do not snore!" was Blake's indignant retort.

"Dude, I'm so gonna tape you next time. You sound like a buzz saw." A half-grin now forming on his face, Hunter followed up on that statement with a lightning-quick charge and for the next few moments, the only sounds on the small strip of beach were the clanking of the two Thunder ninjas' weapons. The wooden practice staffs crashed into each other again and again with such blinding speed that their individual movements were almost indiscernible.

A few feet away, reclining with his back against a boulder, Cam couldn't hold back an amused snicker at the brotherly bantering while he tried to keep a sharp eye on the two Thunders' training weapons. Ever since Blake and Hunter had officially joined the Wind Rangers' team about a month ago, Cam had discovered that, in addition to their almost daily work-outs with Tori, Dustin and Shane, the Bradleys also had their own training routine. After official ninja training, they would often stay and take the wooden versions of their Thunderstaffs down to Ninja Ops' concealed beach cove and spar for another hour. A week ago, after a heated argument over who had scored the most hits, they had drafted Cam as scorekeeper. Cam had protested at first, citing that on top of fixing zords, gliders and other assorted equipment, he hardly had time to lounge around the beach, but he had been overruled. Now he was glad about it, for he had to admit that it was nice getting out of the cave every now and then.

And then there was the other reason, of course; it gave him a most convenient excuse to watch Hunter.

Following the blond Thunder ninja's fluid, graceful movements with his eyes, Cam had a hard time keeping his attention on the poles instead of Hunter's face and body. Cam had known for years that he was gay, and whereas he wasn't flamboyant or even fashion-conscious, he also made no motion to hide his lifestyle; he had faced up to and accepted his attraction to other men a long time ago. The three Wind Rangers knew about his inclinations and as far as he could tell, they were all fine with it. And he had come out to his father a few years ago before he left for college.

Cam gave a small, inaudible sigh. He had been back from UCLA only a few months and the attack on the academy had occurred in the same week as his return. So within days after he had set his suitcase down in his old room, he found himself living in an underground cave, his father turned into a guinea pig, monitoring a crazy space ninja wreaking havoc all around Blue Bay Harbor and directing three inept ninja students-turned-Power Rangers in fighting the man and his monsters. Then the two Thunder Rangers had appeared on the scene, but thankfully, they had been able to cure them from Lothor's brainwashing. Things had gotten a little easier after they joined the team, but Cam couldn't help but notice his concentration slipping every time a certain tall, blond ninja was within close proximity.

But why Hunter? He had been mulling this over for quite some time, yet it continued to confuse Cam, for he certainly didn't feel anything of the sorts for any of the other male members of the team. Maybe it was Hunter's frankness, his temper – so different from his own – or his sparkling blue eyes…

"Damn!"

Hunter's strained exclamation made Cam blink and brought his attention back to the sparring going on before him. Blake had just scored another hit to his older brother's side. The dark-haired Thunder ninja smirked and reined in his staff.  
"Dude, I'm leading by, like, five hits," he grinned, completely unfazed by Hunter's smoldering glare. "I think we can safely declare this session finished."

Hunter threw Cam a glance and raised his eyebrows as if to say _Five? Really?_

The technician nodded in affirmation, causing Hunter to make a face, feinting dismay. But then he shrugged, clamped his bo under his arm and started towards the shorter Bradley. They rapped leather-wrapped knuckles and Hunter slapped Blake playfully upside the head. "All right, I'll wipe the floor with you tomorrow, then."

"You wish," Blake grinned, swiping back at his brother half-heartedly. "Face it, you're getting old, _eighteen_." The two Thunder ninjas were only a few feet away from Cam's resting spot and as Blake walked towards Cam, Hunter fell in step with him.

"Hey, that's still three days away, all right, and don't you even start with me; you're only a year behind me!"

Cam, who had been pulling himself to his feet, paused for a brief moment, suddenly alert. _Hunter was turning eighteen in three days?_

Blake and Hunter had reached Cam's boulder. Cam slapped Blake's shoulder lightly in silent congratulation for the won match, and together the three of them made their way across the sand and back towards Ninja Ops. The Thunder brothers were discussing the various scored hits, asking Cam's opinion repeatedly, but Cam suddenly had a hard time keeping his focus.

_Hunter's birthday…_

_**Deep thoughts…**_

Peace and quiet. Finally.  
Cam lay on his bed, arms crossed on the pillow behind his head, staring up at the stone ceiling of the small, windowless room that served as his temporary home inside Ninja Ops. Blake and Hunter had hung around for a little while longer after their return from the beach, then finally headed back to Blue Bay Harbor and their shared apartment. After their departure, Cam had tried to get some work done on the supercomputer, but for some reason, his mind kept returning to the little snippet he had overheard on the beach. So Hunter's birthday was on Saturday. In three days. Cam had stared at the schematics of the Thunderstorm Megazord on the eighty-inch screen before him, but instead of the multicolored robot, he saw an imaginary parade of random items dancing across the screen: anything from crimson-colored motocross outfits to the latest editions of Japanese anime comic books a certain blond Ranger favored. After a long moment, Cam admitted defeat and pushed away from the computer console to retreat to his room. He was too distracted to focus on work. Instead he wanted to lie down and concentrate on the perfect birthday present for Hunter.

Not just any present would do. Cam was a perfectionist; he was going to get Hunter not just something that would look nice, but also be practical - preferably in crimson. And most importantly, something Hunter would be genuinely happy to get. He wanted to put a smile on the Thunder ninja's face, a smile that would be directed at him alone.

Cam wondered - not for the first time - just when that undeniable attraction he felt towards Hunter had crept up on him. Certainly not from the very beginning, for kidnapping one's father definitely wasn't listed as a turn-on in Cam's book of Rules Of Attraction Towards Other Men.

He had to give Blake and Hunter credit for a few things, though; ever since the Thunders formally joined the team, they had worked diligently on redeeming themselves in the eyes of the Wind Rangers, Sensei and Cam. They fought Lothor's monsters with single-minded determination, had not missed one day of training and generally made repeated and serious attempts at being friends. Blake's efforts in that regard were noticeably focused on Tori, whereas Cam had found himself on the receiving side of Hunter's attention, albeit more subtly. A seemingly innocent touch here, a longer gaze there...but Hunter had never downright come on to him. Therefore Cam had no idea whether to read more into Hunter's behavior around him or he actually only imagined it all.

Cam sighed and shifted on his mattress. He couldn't deny that he wanted it to be more than just innocent looks and touches, but he also knew that he would most likely have to keep dreaming about it, for he didn't have the nerve for any straight inquiries into that direction.

He had made that mistake once, years ago, when he approached a Water sensei he had had a secret crush on for the longest. It had taken him weeks to work up the nerve to ask him out and the Water teacher had not only rebuffed him fiercely, but had peppered him with silent glares for weeks afterwards until Cam could barely stand to be on the same school grounds with him anymore. The pain and embarrassment of that rejection was seared into Cam's memory and he had sworn to himself that he would never make the first move on another man again unless he was completely sure the other's inclinations ran the same way – even if that meant self-imposed celibacy. Consequently, there had only been two men in Cam's life so far, both fellow college students – and both affairs had been quick and shallow.

Cam yearned to fill the empty spot inside him, to wake up in the arms of somebody he actually cared about, but that seemed to turn more and more into nothing other than wishful thinking.

Sighing again, he took off his glasses, rubbed his eyes and did what he always did when the loneliness threatened to overcome him; he hugged his pillow, squeezed his eyes shut and blocked the intruding emotions from his mind by concentrating on whichever task was at hand at the moment, namely thinking up the perfect birthday present for a team member.  
Only a team member. Nothing more. _Nothing more…_

_**Shopping – first attempt…**_

Cam was in Ninja Ops' kitchenette the next day fixing an early-lunch sandwich when he heard the telltale thumping of boots bounding down the stone steps. A moment later, the three owners of those boots stuck their heads around the corner.

"Hi, Cam."

Mouth full of ham, cheese and bread, Cam could only nod at Shane, Tori and Dustin in greeting.

One dark and one blond head were turning towards their leader and Shane came right to the point. "Dude, we were hoping we could cut the training short today, because we were gonna go shopping for birthday gifts for Hunter," the Red Ranger said. "Wanna come along?"

During the few moments it took Cam to chew and swallow, he thought about the invitation. His first inclination was to decline; the three Wind ninjas certainly didn't need him for their shopping spree, yet they had asked him anyway. Him – the perpetual outsider. It was quite thoughtful of them, and Cam was touched.

"Actually, I was planning on doing the same thing, so...sure," he replied.

"Great." Three grins were now aimed at him.

"Let's head out now, then," Shane suggested. "The earlier we get to the mall, the more time we have to find some cool stuff."

"Speaking of stuff…" Dustin chimed in. "Cam, do you have any idea what Hunter would like?"

That question took Cam by surprise. "Why're you asking _me_?"

Dustin scratched his head. "'cause you're the smartest – and when we asked Blake, he came up with all this outrageous stuff like convertibles, beachside condos and Hawaiian vacations."

Cam chuckled while he grabbed his jacket from the counter and shrugged into it. "Well, since I keep seeing Hunter in the same few shirts all the time, I'd say his wardrobe could use some supplementing. And a couple of gift certificates for some free haircuts definitely wouldn't hurt, either." The technician grinned – an expression that instantly froze when suddenly, the shrill sounds of the supercomputer's monster alert rang through the command center. He was across the room and in front of his keyboard in the blink of an eye, calling up the source of the alarm.

The huge screen came to life showing the Harbor Shore Amusement Park – and a huge, clownish-looking robot monster stomping among the multicolored tents and various rides, swinging his huge fists into concession stands and ticket booths, sending them flying. His head swiveled from side to side, making his wild, orange-colored hair dance in the wind. His big, red clown-nose glowed brightly and despite the wide, immobile grin on his metallic face, he bellowed, "Is everybody having FUN? Yes? Well, too bad, because I HATE FUN!"

From behind and next to Cam's chair, Tori, Shane and Dustin took in the scene with grim expressions.

"Guess Lothor didn't feel like wasting time with the usual warm-up battle," Dustin remarked, eyes fixed on the huge creature. "He went right for giant size this time."

"Time to teach Grumpy some manners," Shane said, already turning from the screen to get into morphing position.

"Yeah," Tori agreed, elbowing the dark-haired boy next to her, then pointed at the monster. "And don't bother to tell him any clown jokes once we get there, Dustin, okay? Somehow I think he would not be amused."

"Well, neither am I," Cam commented, more to himself, as he slammed his hand down onto the communicator button. "Cam to Hunter!"

"What's up, Cam?" came the almost immediate reply.

"Freak-sighting at the Harbor Shore amusement park," Cam reported urgently. "Big, nasty one, too. Is Blake with you?"

"Yup."

"Meet the others at the main entrance. I'm sending the zords." Cam cut the connection, already punching buttons, calling up the lock-release commands on the Rangers' battle machines as behind him, the three Wind ninjas called out their familiar morphing call.

By the time he turned around in his chair, they were suited up and ready.

"Good luck, guys," he said. "The zords should get there right after you do."

The Red, Yellow and Blue Rangers nodded and headed towards the door.

'_I don't believe this!'_ Cam thought, dismayed, as he watched the three Rangers streak out of Ops to meet their new foe. _'This is a conspiracy to keep me from going shopping for Hunter.'_

As soon as the thought left his brain, Cam barked a harsh laugh. Of course it was a conspiracy, albeit Lothor had very different reasons!

With a heavy exclamation, Cam swiveled around again in his seat, facing the computer and zoomed in on the location of the monster to monitor the fight.

_**Battle and aftermath…**_

The battle was long and brutal. Lothor was learning from his earlier defeats, for lately his monsters had become faster, stronger and better armored. The robot-clown exploded at last, but not before the Wind and Thunder Rangers had used up a disconcerting amount of power spheres as well as most of their heavy artillery. Cam had begun to worry that they would run out of weapons sphere disks, but thankfully the last blast from the Lion Laser had proven to be enough to finally obliterate their enemy.

Nevertheless, the Thunderstorm Megazord was in a pitiful state and the Rangers more limped than drove their zords back to Ninja Ops.

Hands on his hips, Cam ran a thorough eye over the machines as they sat suspended in their respective slots in the Zord Bay. There were countless scratches, dents, cracks and other battle marks on their outer hulls, but that wasn't what concerned him the most. The self-regeneration units would take care of the exterior damage, but it was up to him to fix the internal systems, not to mention replenish the now alarmingly low stock of Power Disks.

Cam squeezed his eyes shut as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. So much to do, and all needed to be done right away…

The Rangers had slunk away to recuperate from the battle, but Cam would be getting no rest any time soon; when the Rangers' work was done, his only began. He looked up at the zords one more time.

_High time to get on it – if I'm lucky, this will only take half the night…_

Cam turned and headed back to the command room, his head already buzzing with a mental list of everything that needed his immediate attention.

Gift-shopping, however, did not make it onto that list.

_**Shopping – second attempt…**_

Cam made it through the next day's sparring session only because of the artificially induced adrenaline rush of too much coffee. The most pressing repairs on the Rangers' zords had indeed kept him up half the night and the little bit of sleep he had gotten definitely wasn't enough. But there was still much to be done before he could even think about a nap; present-hunting now having turned into the most pressing item on today's agenda.

He did not protest when the Rangers suggested cutting the training short a bit, citing half a dozen excuses ranging from lingering exertion from yesterday's battle to much-needed paid overtime at Storm Chargers.

Cam tried not to look too eager to see them off as he watched them filing out of the command center.

_Great. A quick shower and then off to the Oceanside Mall…_

"Uhm, Cam?" Tori's voice sounded from behind him.

Surprised that she was still here, Cam turned around. "Hey Tori, what's up?"

"I was wondering…you're pretty good at math, right?" The blonde ninja studied Cam while twirling the end of one of her braids awkwardly. Clearly, there was something on her mind.

_Being that I have a Bachelor's degree in computer science, yeah, I would say so…_"Yeah, I can count to ten, why?" Cam wanted to know.

More twirling. "Well, I have an important math test tomorrow and the stuff I need to know for it is all Chinese to me so I was kinda hoping you might be able to help me study for it."

Cam cringed inwardly. "Aren't Shane or Dustin in your math class?"

"Shane is, but he's even more lost than I am," Tori said. "I have no idea how he's going to fudge his way through this test tomorrow."

Cam stifled a sigh and nodded. _Might not be more than an hour or so…_ "All right, sure."

"Great!" she cried, her face lighting up instantly. "Thank you, Cam! I'll just go and get my notes from my van." With another grateful grin, she dashed up the stone steps only to be back a minute later, lugging her study materials.

Cam's spirits sunk into his shoes when he saw the three thick books. He scanned the titles.

"College-level algebra, Trigonometry, _Spanish?"_ He cast a questioning look at Tori. With an abashed look of her own, the Water ninja shrugged, chewing on her thumbnail.

"Uhm, there's also this test on Monday, so I thought maybe while we're at it you could quiz me on some vocabulary…?"

For half a moment, Cam actually considered telling Tori that he didn't have time for all this, but he had never been able to refuse his blonde friend anything. Instead, he stitched a smile onto his face and motioned towards the command table. "Well, looks like we've got a lot of material to cover, then. Better get started, shall we?"

_There goes the trip to the mall. Mierda!_

_**Shopping – third attempt…**_

"Son?"

Cam looked up from the system maintenance program he was configuring to regard his guinea pig father. "What's up, Dad?"

"I was wondering whether you would have time to run an errand for me," Sensei inquired.

"Are we out of guinea pig food already?"

Sensei produced a small slip of paper which he handed to his son. "No, I would like you to go to this calligraphy shop in town and get the items on this list for me, please."

Cam scanned the paper. The name and address of a Japanese shop together with a short shopping list: ink, brushes, rice paper scrolls…

"I was planning on creating a scroll for Hunter with an inspirational Zen quotation," Sensei explained. "Do you think that would be an appropriate birthday present?"

Cam thought of his own scroll hanging over his bed, also hand-written by his father. It was a prized possession. He nodded. "I think that's a wonderful idea. When do you need them?"

"Well, since Hunter's birthday is tomorrow, I was hoping you could get them for me today," Sensei replied.

"No problem, Dad," Cam agreed readily. He had been planning to hit the mall in Blue Bay Harbor later on anyways to see if he could finally find a suitable present for Hunter himself. Yesterday's study session with Tori had indeed run as long as he had feared and by the time Tori had finally had a sufficient understanding of the required math material, he was left with a headache that made the idea of a shopping trip into town about as appealing as a ten-mile high-velocity run through the woods. He had crashed on his bed not five minutes after her departure. Subsequently, he needed to hit the town _today_.

He tapped a few more buttons on his keyboard, executing the computer system's maintenance and virus scan program and pointed at the screen. "The scanning process is going to take a few hours, so I might as well head into town now." Cam rose from his chair, pocketed the slip of paper and winked at his dad. "Try not to hop onto the keyboard while this is running, okay?"

**_Ideas and distractions…_**

The trip to the calligraphy store was quick. Package clamped under his arm, Cam exited the shop and scanned his surroundings, trying to get his bearings as to which way to go to get to the mall.

Across the street, a large sign with the familiar green and orange "Barnes & Noble" print caught his eyes and an idea suddenly formed in Cam's mind. _If Dad makes Hunter a scroll, wouldn't a book with Zen quotations go really well with that?_

Cam swiftly crossed the street and steered towards the bookshop. But the moment he walked inside, his gaze was drawn to the computer section nestled off to the right.

_I really could use an upgraded system maintenance manual…_ His feet veered towards the Computer Manual section almost of their own accord. It took him fifteen minutes to find the desired handbook and he was about to make his way towards the store's Zen collection when a large poster of his favorite suspense writer made him pause.

_He has a new book out? Hmmm… _Locating the author's latest bestseller and thumbing through the thick volume occupied another ten minutes. Now with two books under his arm, Cam resolutely retraced his steps towards his original reason for entering the store. He was half a dozen steps away from Eastern Mythology when his cell phone rang.

"Cam, I am not sure what is happening, but your computer screen is flashing a rather large warning sign." His father's voice sounded grave.

"What's it say?" Cam asked.

"It says _Infection found_."

Not particularly worried, Cam kept strolling towards the Zen section. "It's probably just a routine warning window. I'll check it out when I get home."

"I might not know much about computers, Cam," Sensei said, "but I don't think _'high level of threat, unable to remove'_ is a routine warning."

Level of concern suddenly increasing, Cam frowned. _Could be a virus, or a worm, or worse… "_I'll be right there, Dad." Cam turned, now moving into the direction of the cash register. "Don't touch anything!" he added before he hung up, already pulling out his wallet. Luckily, there was no line at the checkout counter and he sprinted out of the store only a minute later with his purchases. As he ducked behind the bookstore, readying himself for the streak back to the academy, he sighed.

_So much for Hunter's Zen enlightenment._

_**Bad Dustin…**_

Spyware. It seemed to have started with a trojan horse picked up from a website named 'MotoFury', which had in turn installed close to a dozen spyware and adware programs. Cam shook his head exasperatedly as he called up the history of activity on that particular site. Someone had downloaded dozens of video clips from there yesterday, and gotten the trojan along with them. Now the Supercomputer's system had a virtual infestation of spyware. Cam opened one of the clips. It was a demonstration of a freestyle motorcycle jump.

"Dustin," he growled as he set towards the tedious and long drawn-out task of deleting the clips and cleaning up his system while he made up his mind whether the Earth ninja should be made to clean the entire Zord Bay or do a triple rounding of the entire Wind Academy. That would come out to about ten miles…

Normally, Sensei dished out the penalty runs for stunts like that, but this time, Cam was of a mind to take the law into his own hands.

_Another opportunity for shopping down the drain!_ Cam raked his hands through his hair and shot his father a glance. Sensei was on top of the command table, brush in paw, busily drawing Japanese kanji characters onto one of the rice paper scrolls Cam had purchased for him.

_Oh well, at least Dad will have a present tomorrow._

_**The big day…**_

Saturday morning Cam awoke with a sickening feeling in his stomach. Ridding the Supercomputer's system of the spyware pest had been more complicated and time-consuming than expected and by the time Cam was able to finally declare the system purged, it had been way too late to streak back into town to do any more shopping.

So here he was now, on Hunter's birthday, with the team less than an hour away from arriving at Ninja Ops for their daily training sessions and he was still empty-handed.

Cam swung his legs over the bed to sit on the edge of his mattress, head in his hands. There was no way he could find a gift in under an hour, especially when he still didn't even know what to get! With a groan, he pushed himself up and started to pace around his small room. _What to do?_

There was only one thing he could think of. Only one thing he could possibly do within the limited time frame and only if he left right now…

He pulled out his cell phone and punched in Tori's number. After only minimal small talk with the Blue Ranger, he came right to the point.

"Listen, do me a favor: when you guys get here, bring your presents, okay? But don't let Hunter see them; hide them in Dustin's backpack or somewhere." The Winds had caught up on their shopping while Cam had been busy repairing the zords.

"Uhm, okay," came Tori's reply. The puzzled note in her voice was unmistakable, but Cam neither had the time nor the patience for long explanations.

"And can you get in touch with Blake and tell him to bring his, too? Thanks Tori. See you in an hour." He mumbled a goodbye and hung up, already pulling jeans and sweatshirt out of his closet. He had to hurry; time was of the essence.

**To Be Continued…**


	2. Chapter 2

As the three Wind and two Thunder ninjas descended the stone stairs into their secret headquarters, the first thing they noticed was the music; fast-paced and loud. They cast each other bewildered looks – Cam never played music in Ninja Ops.

They arrived at the bottom of the stairs just in time to see Cam coming around the corner from the kitchenette, arms full of glasses, napkins and paper plates.

"Hey guys, just in time!" the technician called out and with a nod of his head, he beckoned them to turn their heads.

Ninja Ops' command center had changed.

A large banner was hanging above the command table, stretched clear across the entire room from what appeared to be a clothesline. The words "HAPPY BIRTHDAY HUNTER" were printed in multi-colored letters. Each letter took up one page of computer paper and it was clear that Cam had composed and printed that banner himself. Balloons in two shades of red as well as yellow, blue and navy were hanging from the streamer and bouncing across the floor.

Below the banner on the command table were five large pizza boxes and several six-packs of sodas next to the boom box blaring out the music.

Cam caught Hunter's startled gaze. "Surprise," he said with a slightly sheepish grin.

The others made their approval known with exclamations ranging from "Sweet, dude" to "Party! Yeah!" and "Great idea, man!"

Tori gave Cam a warm smile and he actually felt himself blushing from the enthusiastic response. But it was Hunter's huge grin that made Cam's heart beat faster. The Crimson Ranger looked utterly surprised, then suddenly crossed the distance between him and Cam in three long strides, pulling the technician into a quick, grateful hug.

"Cam, this is awesome!"

The gang clustered around the low command table, tearing open the pizza boxes and popping soda tops. Tori leaned close to Cam. "Why didn't you tell us about this?" she murmured. Cam shrugged, looking somewhere between self-conscious and awkward.

"It was a last-minute idea. Literally."

Hunter grabbed a pepperoni slice. "Hey, these are still hot! I didn't know Domino's delivered all the way out here," he grinned cheekily at Cam before he downed half the slice with one bite.

"Very funny." Cam lowered his voice. "Just don't let Dad find out. I don't want my streaking privileges revoked."

Hunter just kept grinning at him, a downright comical expression with two cheeks full of food. For a while the six teens gorged themselves on pizza and soda, laughing and taking turns teasing Hunter about his _old age_ until Dustin, of all people, remembered that Cam was even older and the team immediately shifted their focus onto the poor technician. Luckily, Cam was saved from the brunt of their taunts by a sudden movement next to the supercomputer. His father was approaching on his motorized guinea pig habitat.

Sensei Watanabe looked over the assembled teens. "Ah, you're all here. Very good." He nodded at Hunter. "My sincerest congratulations on your birthday, Hunter. I have something for you to commemorate the occasion."

With that, he reached behind him, pulled out a tightly wrapped scroll and handed it to the blond Thunder ninja. Hunter accepted the gift with a bow. Carefully, he pulled on the string that held the rice paper together and unrolled the scroll slowly. Four vertical lines of Japanese kanji characters took up the entire page, and Cam saw Hunter's eyes light up at the beauty of Sensei's handcrafted calligraphy.

Sensei motioned towards the symbols. "It is a Zen quote. It says:

_If you understand,  
__things are just as they are;  
__If you do not understand,  
__things are just as they are._

I believe you understand the meaning behind this quote," the tiny teacher said solemnly. "Let it be a source of strength to you in times of hardship and a source of calm in times of uncertainty."

Hunter bowed deeply to his teacher. "Thank you, Sensei. This is beautiful and I will find a special spot in my room for it." It was clear to see that the Thunder ninja was deeply moved by this gift.

"Well, now that Sensei started it, we might as well keep the presents coming," Blake said and nodded at Dustin who was already pulling his backpack towards him. The Earth ninja handed his friends their respectively wrapped parcels and Blake was the first one to push his present into Hunter's hands.

"Here you go, bro. Happy birthday."

With the eagerness of a preschooler, the blond man tore into his first present - a dark red square of cloth. Hunter held it up and as it unfolded, it was revealed to be a crimson football jersey. The number 18 was printed in white on the front and the back and above the back numbers, in equally white, bold letters, was the word BRADLEY.

Hunter's eyes went wide and a huge grin split his face. "Oh, dude, this is so _ill_, bro!" Without hesitation or even the slightest qualms about public exposure, he stripped off his old shirt, tossed it aside and slipped the new one over his head.

Cam was glad everyone's attention was on the birthday boy, for no one noticed the slight flush he felt creeping into his cheeks at the all-too brief sight of the Thunder ninja's smooth, naked chest.

Hunter enveloped his brother in a bear hug. "This is custom-made, man, how did you do that?"

Blake grinned in obvious pleasure. "Kelly knows the owner of this sportswear store who specializes in stuff like that. She hooked me up." He patted the taller man's crimson-clad chest. "So you like it, huh?"

"Love it, dude. Thanks!"

Shane's gift was an assortment of three music CD's of Hunter's favorite artists. Dustin presented him with a pair of heavy-duty leather motocross gloves and Tori's wrapped package turned out to be a black nylon backpack with dark red piping, a crimson lightning bolt embroidered on its front pouch.

Hunter was positively beaming at his stash of presents.

Great," Blake exclaimed, examining his brother's new knapsack. "Now you can finally throw out your old, ratty one."

"Why? It's still good," Hunter replied.

"Dude, it's held together with safety pins and duct tape."

"Only two pins." Hunter's grin grew wide at the sight of Blake rolling his eyes at him.

"Oh, and here's one last one." Shane handed Hunter an envelope. "We all chipped in on this."

Hunter pulled the plain white card out of the envelope. "Dinner for two at The Prime Grill?" He looked up and into the round with an expression of disbelief. "That's, like, the hottest steakhouse in town. Wow!"

Cam tried very hard to keep his face from showing his astonishment at that unexpected gift, let alone his indignation. No one had asked _him _for a contribution! If they had, at least he would have had _something_ to give to Hunter, even if it was only a twenty-dollar part of a restaurant gift certificate.

But they hadn't, and Cam was once again back to being empty-handed. Not to mention that it was just more proof that he simply wasn't part of the team. They were Rangers, he was only tech-support and that's how it would always be.

_But did they have to wave it in his face quite so inconsiderately? _

Hunter's beaming smile was directed at everyone, including Cam, and the sight instantly changed the technician's anger to guilt. He was convinced that Hunter would be asking about _his _contribution to the present-shower any moment now. And indeed, the blue eyes fixed on him.

"So…"

_Oh god, here it comes!_

"Who's up for going to the beach? It's awesome outside, we could play some Volleyball…"

Excited exclamations were the universal response and Cam gave a small sigh of relief.

And while Shane and Dustin squabbled over the last piece of pizza and Tori and Blake packed the remaining sodas into a small cooler to take along, Hunter turned to Cam.

"Hey, Cam, can I leave my stuff here until we get back?" The Crimson Ranger indicated his assortment of gifts and before Cam could consent to it, Hunter had already gathered up most of his new belongings and was heading into the direction of Cam's room. Cam quickly snatched the motocross gloves left behind on the table and hurried after him.

_**Cam's room…**_

"Man, this is the best birthday I've had yet," Hunter exclaimed excitedly as they stepped inside the small chamber. "I mean, all these cool presents, a surprise party, now hanging out at the beach for the rest of the day…" The Crimson Ranger looked around the room in search for a place to drop his things, then simply plopped his gifts onto Cam's bed.

When Cam glanced at Hunter, he caught him scanning the room once again, this time more curiously. Hunter had never been in Cam's room before and the Thunder Ranger's eyebrows lifted slightly at the Spartan furnishings.

"Man, this is more like a monk's cell," he said before his eyes found the solitary piece of decoration on the wall. "Hey, you have one, too!"

Hunter stepped closer towards the head of Cam's bed, studying the scroll hanging there. It was almost identical to Hunter's in its simplicity, but the kanji characters were different.

"Your dad made this one, too?"

"Yeah."

"What's it say?" Hunter asked and although Cam knew the quote by heart, he stood next to the taller man as he read it out loud.

"_The body is the tree of enlightenment,  
__The mind like a clear mirror stand;  
__Time and again wipe it diligently.  
__Don't let it gather dust."_

"Whoa, that's deep," Hunter proclaimed. Cam shrugged with a small smile.

"Dad's a 'deep' guy, if you haven't noticed yet."

"Believe me, I have," Hunter held up his own re-wrapped scroll. "With presents like that, it's hard not to notice. Especially if it comes from a philosophizing guinea pig."

_He had to say it, had to say it right now before it drove him nuts. _"I'm sorry, Hunter."

The blond ninja's eyebrows creased in confusion when he turned to look at him. "Sorry for what?"

Cam avoided his gaze. "Well, you must have noticed that I am the only one without a present…"

"Cam, you threw me a surprise party," Hunter replied promptly. "That was my present."

Cam blinked, taken aback; that thought had never even occurred to him. "I…But I still didn't have an _actual _present," he insisted, eyes downcast.

Hunter moved until he stood directly in front of Cam, just a little too close for comfort. "Dude, will you stop worrying about that?" he said solemnly. "It's not like you have to get me anything at all, okay? You put a lot of thought into this – I mean, the decorations and streaking into town to get the food…"

Something in Hunter's voice made Cam look up. Two blue eyes were gazing at him intently, almost lovingly. "And I'm grateful, Cam. Thank you."

And before he could react, Hunter was already enveloping him in a tight hug. Tight enough to actually press their bodies together and to Cam's mortification, his body promptly – and fiercely – reacted.

The sudden slight stiffening in Hunter's posture confirmed the worst; namely that Hunter had felt that response. Cam wanted nothing more than to sink into the floor and quietly die of embarrassment. .

"I'm sorry," he stuttered instead as he quickly disentangled himself from Hunter's embrace. His cheeks were burning and he could not look at the Thunder ninja's face. "I don't know why…this won't happen again, I promise. I…I'm sorry." He tried to back away further from the taller man, but was stopped by a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Cam…"

Reluctantly, Cam looked up. There was no trace of abhorrence in Hunter's face; indeed, his eyes were fixed directly on Cam; intense – and impossibly blue.

"What if I told you I wouldn't mind if it happened again?"

Cam stood immobile, gaping. His body as well as his mind had frozen up, the meaning of Hunter's words for some reason not sinking into his brain as quickly as they should have. He saw Hunter swallow, saw his eyes cloud over with indecision for the briefest of moments before the crimson-clad shoulders squared resolutely.

"I've been scoping you out for weeks, Cam, but you are so oblivious..." Hunter's voice, not to mention his words, finally broke Cam's mental paralysis.

"What? I mean…I'm not oblivious, I…I'm very busy!" Cam replied automatically, trying to sound indignant, yet he couldn't quite keep the elation out of his voice at Hunter's unexpected disclosure. Hunter was interested! In _him_! The realization almost made his knees buckle.

"_You_'ve been checking _me _out?" Cam didn't think it could get more ironic than that.

Hunter was about to speak when Cam's delight was suddenly dimmed by another thought. "Hold on, wait a minute...If you have been checking me out and I haven't noticed, then - who has?"

The Thunder ninja flashed him his trademark crooked grin. "Pretty much everyone else."

Hunter's grin widened at Cam's groan but then he suddenly reached out and placed his hand back on Cam's shoulder. The touch was careful, tentative, but Cam neither flinched nor drew back from the warm hand. Hunter obviously took this as enough consent to step closer.

Abruptly, the air in the room changed; it seemed to suddenly be laced with anticipation and a thrill ran through Cam.

"So you weren't deliberately ignoring me," Hunter concluded, "you really didn't…"

"I didn't know," Cam finished for him. "Or at least I wasn't sure."

Hunter looked amused. "Cam, you have no gaydar whatsoever."

Cam could not for the life of him think of a fitting, snappy return. The alluring smile on Hunter's face was simply way too distracting. "I…uh…"

"Well, I have, and it's been aimed at you for a long time." Hunter looked away for a moment as if in contemplation before his eyes found Cam's face again. "I don't know if I'm making a complete idiot of myself right now, but…" And suddenly Hunter's lips were on his. Warm, soft and simply wonderful.

It was an exploratory kiss, chaste and close-lipped – and over way too soon.

With superhuman determination, Cam managed to get his breathing back down to almost normal. He wasn't so lucky when it came to his frantically beating heart. There was no way the human heart could keep up this pace for any extended period of time without some sort of repercussion. There had to be some Zen mantra he could repeat in his mind a few dozen times to reclaim his inner calm.

He couldn't think of a single one. He couldn't think, period. All he could do was to repeat, "I never knew…" It came out in a hoarse stutter.

Hunter smiled. "Hey, I'm a ninja; being inconspicuous is one of my most important traits. But it _did _take me a while to figure you out."

The corners of Cam's mouth quirked upwards at that and for a moment, the two young men simply gazed at each other until Hunter's arm snaked from Cam's shoulder to his waist, tightening, pulling the slightly shorter man closer, their mouths closing in on each other once again…

"_Come on, you guys, if we don't leave now, I'm going to miss the noon tide and that's got the best waves_," came Tori's urgent voice from way too near by the door. Cam and Hunter jumped, startled back into reality, and broke their embrace.

With a rueful smile that must have mirrored on Cam's face, Hunter murmured, "Can't have her missing the perfect waves."

"No way," Cam chuckled. "We'd have the wrath of the Blue Ranger on us."

"Scary thought." Hunter's eyes briefly glanced back towards Cam's lips. "To be continued later?" he asked, a hopeful note in his voice.

Cam could only nod, renewed anticipation closing up his throat.

"How about later on tonight? I could come back here with you…"

They were still face-to-face, so close that for a moment Cam could see his dual reflection in the black of Hunter's pupils. Then the blond ninja's eyes drifted closed as his mouth descended upon Cam's once more.

"_All right, we're leaving now!"_ Tori was starting to sound impatient, yet neither she nor any of the others came bursting into Cam's room like he half-expected them to. Cam nevertheless cast a nervous glance towards the door.

"It's strictly up to you, though," Hunter said after their lips parted again; he was

completely ignoring the call from the command center. "Think about it, okay?" His eyes were firmly fixed on Cam.

"I will," Cam replied, hoping his voice sounded steady enough. The implications were clear, an invitation for more, much more, to come had been extended and it was up to Cam to either accept or decline. But with those beautiful eyes burning into him, refusal was not an option.

After a moment of silent eye-locking, Hunter glanced towards the door and sighed. "All right, come on, let's go, before they burst into here and decide to carry us out."

Cam hesitated and Hunter cocked his head.

"You _are_ coming to the beach with us, right?"

"I don't know..." Cam scratched at his neck. "I still haven't finished restocking all of the Megazord's Power Disks..." _Not to mention that my knees are still weak and my heart is racing. Not ideal beach conditions…_

Hunter folded his arms across his chest. "Hey, you know, the sunlight travels ninety-three million miles through space to get here." He gave Cam a wry look. "The least thing you can do is show your appreciation by coming to the beach with us to soak up some of those rays."

Cam stared at the blond man with raised eyebrows and the Thunder Ranger grinned. "Didn't think I knew stuff like that, did ya?"

"No. No, I didn't, " Cam admitted.

"Sometimes I'm actually awake during classes in school." Hunter stepped closer. "It would mean a lot to me if you came along," he said in a surprisingly soft voice.

In a faraway compartment of his mind, Cam dimly remembered that he really had too much work still left to do on the Thunderstorm Megazord, but one look at Hunter and he knew there was no way he wouldn't go.

"Okay," he nodded. "Let me just change clothes and I'll be right out."

Hunter beamed at him. "Good." He leaned in one more time for a quick kiss. "That's to hold me over until later." Then he turned and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Cam emerged from his room only a minute later. To Hunter's obvious yet unspoken amusement, he wore shorts and a white T-shirt sporting the words _May The Source Code Be With You_ in receding Star Wars-like block letters across the front.

"All right, let's go."

**_Beach Time…_**

It was indeed the perfect weather for a day at the beach, Cam had to admit that. The temperature was in the low nineties, with a cool enough breeze from the ocean to be able to play a nice long game of Volleyball without overheating. Yet, after Cam and the Thunder ninjas grudgingly had to admit defeat by the Winds, Hunter apparently thought that they all needed to cool off anyways.

"All right, everybody, time to hit the waves," he cried, already pulling off his new jersey.

Hunter's body was lean and toned and while he was not as muscled as Shane, it wasn't the Red Ranger Cam was trying very hard not to stare at.

The rest of the gang chucked their various shirts, tank tops and shorts until they were all down to their swim wear and grabbed the assortment of inflatable beach toys they had brought along. Cam kept his shirt on.

"Uhm, you guys go ahead, I'll just relax over here," he said, already turning to make his way to where the team had spread their blankets and left their cooler a few yards away.

"What's wrong, Cam? Can't swim?" Hunter's voice held a taunting note. He had been about to dash after the other four teens, but now he came towards him, grinning.

"I swim just fine, but somebody needs to stay with the stuff," Cam retorted mildly, indicating the little piles of shoes, clothing and assorted beach gear. "Remember, last time you all went to the beach, you ended up fighting kelzaks who were trying on Tori's bikini and were about to snatch her birthday cake. Don't want a repeat of that."

That only earned him a half-smirk from the Crimson Ranger. The tall ninja caught up with Cam in three long strides, reached over him just as the technician lowered himself onto the blanket, and plucked a Frisbee from Blake's backpack. His arm brushed against Cam's, a casual contact to anyone who might be watching, but it left Cam's skin tingling nevertheless.

"Stay in the shade, then. I wouldn't want you to get too hot." The grin on Hunter's face was enough of an indication to Cam that it wasn't the temperature on the beach he was referring to. Cam gave him his wryest look, but Hunter just winked at him, then turned to join the others by the water's edge.

Cam watched Hunter's muscled back. The Crimson Ranger didn't run; he walked, giving Cam plenty of time to get in a good look.

_Too late._ Hunter's strategy worked; Cam's eyes felt glued to the receding body, the heat involuntarily rising in his cheeks when his gaze traveled lower to linger on a well-formed butt covered by black and crimson cloth. Cam's mouth turned upwards when he noticed a tiny swing in Hunter's hips. Just enough to be inconspicuous to anyone else but him. _Showoff!_

Having reached the rest of the team, Hunter promptly grabbed his brother around the waist, throwing him as well as himself into the waves. The Wind Rangers' laughter drifted across the beach as Blake tried his best to retaliate by jumping onto his big brother's back. Hunter held on and the Navy Ranger succeeded only in dunking them both again.

Cam leaned back onto his elbows. He was glad for the temporary solitude, for it gave him time to get his thoughts in order. Hunter had been surprisingly compliant at him staying behind by himself, but Cam suspected the reason behind it; in his mind he heard the blond man's words from a little while ago: '_I could come back here with you later. But it's strictly up to you.'_

Now he had some time to make up his mind. But what was there really to be made up? He wanted the Crimson Ranger; had been wanting him for a long time. To feel Hunter's naked skin against his, to touch and be touched…Cam sighed; he was only human, after all, with all-too-human wants and needs, but the problem was that he did not want just one night of mindless passion - he wanted more.

Question was: What did Hunter want?

That the blond ninja wanted at least Cam's body had by now been safely established; they had crossed the line back in his room, and on the other side Cam had found a not only receptive, but very eager Hunter.

But if Hunter came back to his room with him, Cam knew that a lot more than just making out was going to happen between them and if Hunter was after just that, then that would result in problems afterwards, for there was more to be considered then merely satisfying their desires – they were in a war, fighting for the safety of the entire planet, and their team had to function perfectly if they were to beat Lothor. Friction between team members for whatever reason could prove not only to be counterproductive, but downright fatal.

These were issues that needed to be addressed before he and Hunter could go any further.

Five sopping wet teens interrupted his train of thought. Having finally decided to come out of the water before they all turned into human raisins, they plopped themselves onto the blankets around Cam, and the technician quickly handed out extra towels before anybody could come up with the brilliant idea of using _him _as a towel.

Shane squinted up at the sky where the sun was slowly getting ready to slip behind one of the larger hills in the distance. "Starting to get late," he remarked.

"Yeah, we should probably wrap it up for today," Tori agreed.

"So, you guys wanna do anything else?" Dustin asked into the round as he reached for his shirt. "Maybe play some video games at my house or something?"

Cam shook his head. "I really have to head back to Ops," he said quickly. "I'm not done with all the repairs on the zords yet."

"Uh, I better come with you," Hunter said, his voice completely neutral, but the quick look he cast at Cam had the inevitable question in it. "So I can get my stuff from your room."

Cam held his gaze for just a fraction of a moment before he replied in an equally even voice, "Yeah, sure, no problem."

And so, with much backslapping and knuckle-rapping, they parted ways for the day; the Wind ninjas and Blake piling into Tori's van to head to Dustin's house, while Cam and Hunter streaked back to their secret headquarters.

**_The real birthday present…_**

Before they entered Ninja Ops, they pulled their heads together in an attempt to quickly devise several plausible excuses to present to Cam's dad as to what reasons there could possibly be for Hunter to accompany Cam back into his room - not to mention staying there with the door closed for an indeterminate amount of time.

Their preparations proved unnecessary, however; next to the supercomputer, Sensei Watanabe was stretched out on his miniature futon inside his habitat, his whiskers quivering with each soft snore, never stirring as the two young men tiptoed past him and towards Cam's room. Once inside, Cam pushed the door closed, then leaned against it with a look of such relief on his face, it coaxed a chuckle out of the Thunder ninja.

There were no overhead light fixtures, so Cam switched on his desk lamp. Muted, slightly amber-colored light from the lampshade, spilled throughout the small room. Cam had barely taken his hand off the light switch before Hunter was already reaching out for him, enveloping him from behind. The Crimson Ranger's lips latched onto his neck and Cam instinctively craned his neck, stifling a groan. _No, they needed to talk first…_Before Cam's brain could become totally muffled, he turned within Hunter's embrace, facing him. "Hunter…"

But before he could get any further, Hunter did something unexpected; Slowly, he reached up and gingerly took off Cam's glasses. Perplexed, Cam let him.

"Your eyes," Hunter said, his voice hoarse.

Cam blinked. "What about them?"

"I had a dream about them just last night," the Thunder ninja said. "You were looking at me, and there was so much passion in your eyes, so much desire…" He ran his thumb along Cam's jaw line. "I want to see that look again, Cam. Only this time for real."

The hand on Cam's jaw moved to the back of his head, the other hand tightening around his waist and Cam melted into Hunter's arms, succumbing to the hungry lips descending over his mouth and the hot tongue that was increasingly demanding entrance. He closed his eyes and opened his mouth, welcoming Hunter's tongue in. The Thunder ninja eagerly accepted the invitation, his tongue caressing, exploring, teasing while he held the slightly shorter man firmly in place as he pressed their bodies together. Cam couldn't stifle the groan that escaped his throat, utterly surprised - and a bit mortified – at the hunger that suddenly flared up inside him. It had been so long since he had been kissed like this, a seeming eternity since he had felt another man's touch that Hunter's hands on his neck and waist seemed to burn through the fabric of his shirt. Desire was consuming him, and he could almost _hear_ his heartbeat frantically thumping in his chest.

With genuine regret, he pulled back from those delicious lips. There were still some things that needed clarifying before this went any further and he lost the last bit of self-control he was now somehow still clinging to.

"Hunter," Cam's eyes bore into the taller man's. "I think there are a few things that need to be established between us. First thing is that I don't go for 'quick and meaningless'."

Hunter held his gaze. "I'm glad. That means we both want more."

Cam briefly closed his eyes in relief and joy at those words. But still, he had to play devil's advocate, just to be sure. "Can you really see this work? I mean...us?"

"If you mean a relationship..." Hunter was dead serious. "God, I hope so."

Cam stared into Hunter's eyes, aware that his scrutinizing gaze could be taken as an insult by the Crimson Ranger, but Cam had to convince himself, had to see proof that Hunter wasn't just paying him lip service.

The blue eyes looking back at him without blinking showed nothing but honest sincerity.

Cam raised a hand to Hunter's face and their next kiss encompassed heat, hunger, passion – and feelings Cam didn't entirely have the courage to face just yet. Instead, he opted for analyzing his emotions at a later time and instead just let himself _feel_ for now.

And feel he did, especially Hunter's hard length digging into his groin; it made his own arousal throb even harder. It astonished him how quickly his body had reacted to Hunter again. But come to think of it – was it really _that _surprising? He hadn't been with anyone in months, since before he left the university, to be exact. And the fact that it wasn't just anyone but the very object of his secret desires who was pressed up against him, plundering his mouth with his tongue, heightened his excitement to no end. He ground his hips into Hunter's in mindless need, and suddenly there seemed to be an entire gulf of clothing between them. It was an intolerable situation, one that had to be rectified right away.

And so it was Cam who made the first move by tugging on Hunter's shirt. The Thunder ninja raised his arms, letting Cam slide the jersey over his head before he returned the favor. A moment later they were pressing their bare chests together. Cam could still smell the salt of the ocean on the other man's skin.

Further undressing involved a lot of touching, kissing and exploring, but finally they found themselves on Cam's bed in a tangle of arms and legs with nothing but hot, naked skin between them.

Cam had ended up on his back, pinned by Hunter's weight on him. With one knee in between the technician's legs, the Thunder ninja was half-lying on, half-straddling Cam, eager hands roaming over his torso. Then, suddenly, Hunter raised his head, his gaze traveling towards the closed door.

It took a moment for Cam's lust-clogged brain to interpret that look. "No need to worry," he rasped. "This room is virtually soundproof, so we're not going to wake him, and now that the door is closed it's not like Dad can walk in on us." Cam cast a look at the thick, wooden door in emphasis.

"True. Would probably take him a couple of days just to somehow get to reach and turn the door knob, I guess," Hunter deadpanned.

"Not a comforting thought should I ever need any kind of sudden medical attention in the middle of the night in here."

"I think right now you need a different kind of attention," Hunter grinned mischievously. His mouth found a spot on Cam's neck just beneath his earlobe and he sucked on the warm skin there.

Cam shuddered with pleasure. Hunter's ministrations on his neck would probably leave a visible mark, but at this point, Cam was way too lost in sensation to care.

Then Hunter's mouth was back on his and the Crimson Ranger was practically licking his mouth open. Cam obeyed, and their tongues met for another intense round of explorations – until Hunter pulled back.

For a long moment, the blond man just looked at Cam, seemingly drinking in the sight of him before his hands began roaming over Cam's body, caressing supple skin, tracing biceps and deltoid, fluttering over shoulder blade and collarbone to finally come to rest around Cam's left nipple. All the while Hunter continued to watch him with a heat in his gaze that kept Cam's heartbeat well above the normal rate. Hunter licked his lips; just a brief flash of pink between his lips before he parted them to speak, but the effect of that sensual gesture went straight to Cam's groin. _Oh, how he wanted to feel that tongue on him, and not just on his mouth. _

"You are all that I had dreamed you would be," Hunter whispered.

"You had imagined this?" Cam asked, genuinely surprised.

"Yes, many times."

Cam closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he made his own confession. "So had I."

"Really?"

At Cam's nod, Hunter smirked. "Well, then why don't we show each other just exactly what we were thinking of?"

And they did. For the next hour they rode wave after wave of passion together until they finally collapsed into each other's arms.

Breathing then seemed to be the most sensible thing to do, at least for a little while, but only a moment later Hunter turned his face and gazed at Cam.

"That was…unbelievable," he whispered while he lovingly pushed a strand of black hair out of Cam's eye. Cam felt strangely flattered at those words.

"Now _that_ was the best birthday present of all."

**_Epilogue…_**

Exhausted, spent, not capable of anything else other than sleep, the two young men automatically re-arranged themselves out of the tangle of their various intertwined limbs. The slight height difference between them worked perfectly for snuggling. A moment later, they were spooned up against each other, Cam's back against Hunter's chest, and it felt not only right, but perfectly natural; as if they were meant to end up like that right from the beginning. Under the blanket, Hunter's hand traveled up Cam's waist until it came to rest on his chest, and Cam instinctively covered his lover's hand with his own. Letting out a deep, content sigh, Cam closed his eyes, wondering if he would wake up alone, but too tired and happy to have Hunter's warm body to curl up into to worry about that right now.

Cam guarded his heart fiercely, but somehow, Hunter had managed to get past his defenses, settling himself firmly in place there. This new development was exciting and disconcerting at the same time, but it was something Cam decided he could get used to.

If he ended up alone in bed in the morning, he would deal with the heartache there and then, but not now; not when he was exactly where he had yearned to be for weeks, safely and comfortably wrapped up in Hunter Bradley's arms and he'd be damned if he didn't enjoy every moment of it.

In the underground stillness of his room, Hunter's soft breathing behind him was the only sound and after a few minutes, Cam was sure his new lover was sound asleep - therefore he almost jumped at the sudden sound of Hunter's soft voice.

"How do you stand to live down here?"

"I don't have any choice," Cam replied simply.

"Don't you miss hearing noises? I mean, things like falling asleep to the sound of rain, or waking up from the sunlight shining into your room, or birds chirping outside…or some idiot revving his car engine right outside your window." Cam could hear the small smile in Hunter's voice, and he turned to face him.

"I do, but until we get the academies and the ninja students back, this is going to have to do." Cam paused, a slight grin emerging on his face before he added, "When it gets to the point that I desperately need to hear birds sing, I'll just camp out in the woods."

Hunter chuckled politely before he continued. "I guess what I'm trying to say is…my room has a window, you know. My bed is also bigger than yours, so we'd be more comfortable…And if you're worried about leaving your surveillance system, you can bring your communicator-thingy or whatever you're using to stay in touch with the computer here; that way you can stay all night." He hugged Cam tighter, nuzzling his neck. "I would like that," he murmured into Cam's ear before he nipped playfully on the lobe. But nibbling on Cam's ear was short-lived; apparently, Hunter had more to say.

"I don't want you to get me wrong – what just happened here was mind-blowing to say the least, but it's not just sex I want from you." The Thunder Ranger's mouth had not left Cam's ear, so despite his soft voice, the technician heard every word clearly. "I'd like to spend time with you, get to know you better. Find out what you like and don't like…For example - do you like steak?"

Hunter's eyebrows lifted inquiringly whereas Cam's drew together in temporary puzzlement at the question. But then he nodded.

"Actually, yes, I do."

"Great. So will you have dinner with me at the Prime Grill tomorrow, then?"

Cam blinked. An entire collection of light bulbs came on inside his head as he finally put two and two together. The others had known Hunter had his eyes on him…of course the odds would have been heavily in favor of Hunter asking _him_ to be his date.

Cam propped himself up on one elbow, fixing Hunter with an intense gaze

"The gift certificate! That's why the others never asked me to contribute to it. They knew you were going to ask me, didn't they?"

Hunter just grinned cheekily. "Wouldn't be right to ask you to chip in on your own dinner date."

"This was all a set up!"

Now Hunter laughed and from the look on the Thunder ninja's face, Cam was pretty sure that the blond had figured the plot out a while ago, probably when he first opened the envelope.

"Gotta love those teammates of yours."

_Teammates. _That word now sent a warm feeling cursing through Cam. _Maybe I **am** part of the team after all. _"Did you know about this?"

The younger man shook his head solemnly. "No, I didn't. I only figured it out later on. Honestly."

Cam believed him.

"And afterwards, we can go back to my place for a nightcap." Hunter's voice carried a hint of huskiness - one Cam decided to acknowledge.

"In that bigger bed of yours?" he asked suggestively, then leaned in, running his tongue across Hunter's lips before he turned it into a full kiss. Hunter responded only too eagerly.

"Yeah. And I hope you'll stay until we both get woken up by the idiot with the loud bike the next day," he said once he got his breath back from the deep kiss.

"Maybe you should suggest to the idiot to park his bike somewhere else."

"I tried, but Blake's stubborn. He likes his bike as close to him as possible. It's his baby, you know." Hunter grinned and Cam couldn't help but laugh. He shook his head in mock exasperation as the blond ninja drew him against his chest.

"So what do you say? Do we have a date for tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I'd love to go out with you," Cam replied, smiling. "One condition, though. When you pick me up tomorrow, don't bring me flowers."

Hunter's laugh was something Cam could easily find himself getting addicted to.

"All right, I'll bring you a can of motor oil instead."

They kissed once more before they re-settled themselves beneath the covers – Cam's back once again to Hunter's chest. Warm, comfortable, natural; Cam hoped with all his heart that this was only the first of many times he would find himself in this position.

"Hunter?"

The responding _'Hmmm?'_ sounded decidedly sleepy.

"Happy Birthday."

**THE END**

_Thank you, everyone, for having left or leaving me a comment about this little fic. For those who would like to read the uncensored NC-17 version, it can be found - as usual - on Camille's www. Rangerfiction. net under New Arrivals. _

_Please note that, in order to read Adult stories there, you now have to be a registered user. Signing up only takes a minute!_


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